ERISA section 510 makes it unlawful for any person to discharge, fine, suspend, expel, discipline, or discriminate against a participant or beneficiary for exercising any right to which he is entitled or may become entitled under an ERISA plan. It also makes it unlawful to discharge, fine, ...
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Successor Fiduciaries Can Be Personally Liable For Fiduciary Breaches
In this article, we address the question of whether a successor can become personally liable for a breach of fiduciary duty under ERISA (and the federal common law of trusts), if the breach occurred prior to the fiduciary’s appointment as trustee. We also will look into whether a successor trustee ...
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Pension Actuaries: Do You Need One For Your Plan?
The role of the pension actuary on the retirement plan team …
Actuaries are well trained in determining pension liabilities and costs and can often quote the pension sections of the Internal Revenue Code verbatim. But do you need one? Do you have one? Whether you have one is often determined by ...
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The Employee Plans Compliance Resolution System (EPCRS): When Haste DOESN’T Make Waste
I can still hear my mother saying it, "Haste makes waste, Marcel." And it is true in many situations – acting too quickly can cause mistakes that waste time and money. But it isn't always the case with qualified plan failures. In most cases, timely correction of a failure will cost you less money ...
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Safe Harbor Plans: Does Your 401(k) Need To Be One?
Does your Code section 401(k) plan keep failing the nondiscrimination tests? Or are your highly compensated employees (HCEs) unable to defer as much as they would like because of the low level of deferrals by the nonhighly compensated employees (NHCEs)? If so, you should consider as one of your ...
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SIMPLE 401(k) Versus A Safe Harbor 401(k): The Pros And Cons For Your Small Business
A small employer may find that converting its 401(k) plan into a "SIMPLE" 401(k) plan is preferable to adopting a traditional safe harbor 401(k) plan. What is a SIMPLE 401(k) plan? It is a 401(k) plan under which the employer makes either (i) a nonelective contribution to the plan equal to ...
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What It Means To Be An ERISA Fiduciary
An overview of ERISA fiduciary rules...
ERISA's definition of "fiduciary" basically encompasses three categories of responsibility or activities with respect to an employee benefit plan. In addition to anyone who is specifically named as a fiduciary by the terms of an ERISA plan, a person is ...
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ERISA-Covered Plan Investment And Fee Disclosures To Participants: The What, Who, And How
What: In 2012, Department of Labor (DOL) rules went into effect requiring plan administrators of ERISA-covered plans with participant-directed investments to make specified disclosures of plan fee and investment information to:
Active participants (those who are actively directing their ...
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ERISA Section 404(c) Compliance Alert
Do you have a defined contribution plan that allows participant-directed investments? If so, read on.
Participants generally will be responsible for the investment results of their accounts if the applicable regulations under ERISA section 404(c) are followed. But what if a ...
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